Food Truckin’ It

What to do after the dining halls and sandwiches have left us longing for something more worldly yet comforting, gourmet yet cheap? Where to go when the meal points are low, all the Easy Mac is gone and our wallets are shamefully thin? Two simple nouns answer the question and leave the stomach stuffed and satisfied.

Food Truck. 

What was once considered the domain of construction workers in search of the standard greasy tacos and cheese steaks, the food truck has broken with its stereotypic image and is headed for gourmet grandeur, without forgetting its humble history of course. The latest trend in food has left the confines of the restaurant and hit the road.

The food truck craze may have originated on the sunny streets of Los Angeles but it has made a home for itself in North Berkeley. Every Wednesday from 5 to 9 pm between Rose and Shattuck, Off The Grid!, an organized gathering of roughly ten food trucks, serves up fresh, fast, original food. Food groupies (aka Foodies) and neighborhood newcomers alike pack the lot, converting a once empty street into a bustling block party.  Here are some of the best Off the Grid! has to offer.

STREATERY

Dedicated to “feeding the urban peasant,” chef and owner Dan Vivou left her desk job in finance behind and followed her passion for cooking she learned from her father. She launched her first food truck, Streatery, in 2011. Vivou believes that feeding the urban peasant involves using all that is available to its full extent and making quality food accessible to locals.

“Good food shouldn’t be a privilege, it should be accessible”. Streatery achieves this accessibility by using rough cuts and local produce to keep prices low. Most importantly, the truck introduces many unsuspecting customers to a new, more adventurous take on eating. “My favorite part of lunch runs is exposing food to people who wouldn’t normally have tried this-those are my favorite clients.”

Best known for: The refreshing lavender lemonade,brisket sandwich and the oxtail.

We tried: The oxtail over grits.

All this for: up to $10

It was absolutely amazing.  Look past the fact that ingesting a tail is involved and picture nothing but a steaming, saucy, common cut of meat drenched in savory juices and a reddish stew, set over creamy white grits. The moist, slick meat sauce drips and soaks the milky grits and creates a damp bed for the meat to settle on. The best way to eat this is to dig right in! Make sure you have the grits and the oxtail on the fork simultaneously.

KOJA KITCHEN

With a paint job that looks like
it hopped off the lively pages of some sort of action- packed Manga and its set of plasma TV screens flashing images of its products, the “Japanese-Korean fast, casual cuisine” truck known as Koja Kitchen makes dishes as flamboyant and loud as its presence. The menu focuses on a full meal experience from main dish to side dish to desert. Koja Kitchen’s staple are the “Kamikaze Fries” and an assortment of Asian barbeque served up in portable, new ways. The San Francisco based truck tends to have the longest lines and has a devoted following of “foodies”.

Best known for: Kamikaze Fries and Meat Kojas

We tried: Beef Koja

All this for: $10 or lower

The Beef Koja was an interesting sight to behold. When ordering  Asian barbeque, a steaming package containing a hamburger shaped foodstuff inside is not expected but, that’s what comes out out of the truck window and it’s accepted, after just one bite because it’s that damn good. The Koja Beef creation sits on an innovative sesame bun that holds no relation, except for form, to bread buns seen in hamburger joints. The sesame bun is entirely crispy and crunchy, perfectly browned. The spicy beef is balanced by crisp lettuce and sauces and sprinkled with roasted sesame seeds. The Koja is almost like an Asian remake of an In N Out burger, offering surprising substitutes and distinctive counterparts to the simple patty and bun.

CUPKATES

Kate McEachern founder, a.k.a. “Chief Cupcake Officer”, of the Bay Area’s first mobile cupcake truck, Cupkates, now commands a two truck fleet.  With the slogan “Butter, Sugar, Eggs, Flour” Cupkates emphasizes the simplicity and basic ingredients involved in making delectable cupcakes with “no gimmicks”. This straightforward approach basically results in, literally, the best cupcakes on earth, let alone wheels. The bakery supplies the truck with a constant menu but look for seasonal and monthly special creations. Cupkates should be the last stop on any foodie’s food truck trek, for that finishing touch of sweetness.

Best known for: Cupcakes, duh! The bestseller is the Salted Caramel but the menu includes Tiramisu, Red
Velvet, S’mores, Double Vanilla, Double Chocolate, and Ginger Lemon.

We tried: Salted Caramel Cupcake (and we got the last one too!)

All this can be yours for: $3 per cupcake

The Salted Caramel cupcake was like heaven…in your mouth- singing angels and all. The bestseller is a moist chocolate cupcake  topped with an airy, whipped beige frosting. Sea Salt is scattered about this heap of light topping, and it enhancesthe very sweetness and deep chocolate taste of the cupcake. These cupcakes alone will make you a regular visitor to Off the Grid!

Honorable Mention

Liba Falafel

The truck specializes in simple variations of the Falafel and the most popular items mainly include  Falafel Sandwiches .We recommend the Regular Falafel Sandwich. With its warm, bready, soft pita bread contrasting the crunchy outer layers of the falafel inside it, and the molten feta cheese covering each round falafel in a velvety white coat, the dish is well worth it. Plus, you can customize your order by visiting a small condiment station offering spreads, sauces, pickled vegetables and yogurts.

Kasa Indian Truck

Kasa delivers classic Indian street food. The three staples by Kasa include Kati Rolls, Samosas and Rice Plates. Priding itself in making “Indian Food from Scratch” there is no fusion or extreme experimentation to be seen here and it’s not necessary. We got a daily special which included a mild, lamb curry Kati roll and two Samosas. The Kati roll looks like an Indian burrito but with more spices and the traditional Indian flavor. The roll was heavy on the meat and oozing internal juices. The lamb was especially savory and tender but also extremely hot. Samosas are basic Indian appetizers and are made out of potato.
Kasa’s version delivered their tangy goodness with a punch. Each special came with a cool yogurt sauce and a spicy green sauce.

Hapa SF

Hapa offers up modern, organic, Filipino Cuisine. Some menu items include the Sisig Taco, Chicken Adobo Banhtu and Vegetarian Pancit. We tried the Lumpia Shanghai. The lumpias were not very innovative or experimental in their presentation or taste. They were very basic and not entirely extraordinary, but tasty enough.

3-Sum Eats

Founder and restauranteur Ryan Scott founded his truck based on the idea of featuring a variety of three sandwiches, three fried items and three desserts on the menu. 3-Sum Eats is widely known and has garnered quite a bit of coverage for its fast, home style- comfort food approach. The most famous dish to come out of his truck is undoubtedly the Mac ‘n Cheese Spring Rolls. The rolls are served with a side of “fondue sauce”. The cheesiness is almost overwhelming but the crunchy exterior grounds the taste buds.

All the trucks above can be followed on twitter or Facebook and Off the Grid can be tracked on those sites as well.

Go forth and get the grub on.